US-Cuba Relations & Embargo

The US-Cuba relationship dates back to the Cold when Fidel Castro overthrew Fulgencio Batista in 1959. The United States responded to Castro’s communist political ideology with economic retaliation. The US dissolved all ties with Cuba restricting trade and travel to the country. A full economic embargo was set in place when Castro increased trade with the Soviet Union, which banned imports and exports. In 1961,the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis continued to weaken the relations between Cuba and the United States. The relationship between Cuba and the US created concern, considering that both countries were armed with missiles. The Cuban Missile crisis ended with an agreement to dismantle the missile sites.

In 1992 there were acts put into place stating that the embargo can’t be lifted until Cuba transitions to a democratic government. There have been a few adjustments to the trade embargo that allow some exports of US medical supplies and agricultural products to the island. This has caused a significant loss of about $1.126 trillion. When Barack Obama came into office, he was focused on creating better relations with Cuba. In 2014, Barack Obama and Raul Castro decided to restore full diplomatic ties with Cuba for the first time in over fifty years. Because of the human rights issues that arose in Cuba, many groups support the normalization of US-Cuba relations due to the fact that it could help improve human rights in Cuba. The US has become Cuba’s fifth-largest trading partner, with agriculture and telecommunications industries expanding the most.

The embargo with Cuba impacted the trading process in both countries. Cuba reported to have lost more than $1 trillion because of the trade restrictions that were placed. In terms of net exports and imports, both would definitely decrease due to the trade restrictions. Recently, President Obama relaxed some of the restrictions, but he didn’t completely lift the embargo. The economic growth for the US and Cuba would increase if the embargo were to be lifted, although this isn’t likely to happen seeing that the majority of Congress is opposed. An embargo has a negative impact on the economy of the country enforcing the embargo, as well as other countries. The embargo doesn’t impact the US economy as drastically because the US economy is larger and more stable. In this case, Cuba had a loss of approximately 1.126 trillion as a result of the embargo.With the new rules placed by President Obama on the embargo, trade has begun to rise. This means that exports and imports will slowly start to rise. This will allow Cuba’s economy to expand and recover from the embargo.

 Resources:

Renwick, Danielle. "U.S.-Cuba Relations." Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, 24 Mar. 2016. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

Fletcher, Michael A. "U.S. Trade Embargo with Cuba Keeps Broader Economic Impact at Bay for Now." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 18 Dec. 2014. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.